Room for emergency vehicles!

WHAT IS A SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY (LYNN VALLEY) AND HOW CAN WE ACHIEVE IT?

Written by the late Errnie Crist in 2007.

The North American City is the product of the automobile. It shaped our lives, our culture, and our economic priorities. Land was plentiful, oil cheap and Henry Ford an American hero who turned mass production of cars into a religion.

However, the imperatives for radical change are now upon us. Our reliance on the automobile to commute in the city is past.

Whether we can make the transition to a new 21st century and human environment or not will determine our survival. Global warming is not a myth, the economic cost of single vehicle transportation is not a myth, nor is the waste of land nor is the staggering cost to our health and the depletion of fossil fuel. Change is no longer an option. It is a challenge we will either meet head on or we will suffer serious consequences.

The new 21st century liveable city is designed for people not cars, stated world renowned city planner Hans Blumenfeld on his visit to Vancouver almost 30 years ago. Indeed there are no cars to speak of and to the extent that they exist, they are the exception not the rule.

Transportation in the new city is based on mass transit. It is efficient, convenient, cheap, and pollution free. It is virtually noiseless and pleasing to the eye. It is in harmony with the city’s architecture. It is part and parcel of a new human friendly environment in which people speak to each other and relax while traveling at great speed moving to their destination. It is an antidote to alienation and comprises everything from rapid trains, noiseless street cars, to buses, ferries and mini buses.

The new city has plenty of trees, parks, playing fields, indoor and outdoor recreation and cultural facilities. Most neighbourhoods are self contained for efficiency and yes, there are high-rises. Indeed, compact developments are the rule rather than the exception while total green space is enhanced and pedestrian friendly.

However, the new proposal for high-rises in Lynn Valley is not conducive to this objective. It is the exact opposite. It is outmoded and reactionary.

Far from decreasing reliance on the car it will enhance it. Far from less pollution, there will be more. Far from generating less traffic congestion, there will be more. The reason is that the most important element of enhanced liveability, as outlined in numerous vision statements by the worlds most credible town planners, will be missing, namely a transportation system which reflects this concept and must be its backbone.

If the proposal for high-rises in Lynn Valley, in the name of motherhood and apple pie, is implemented as it will unless the people stand up now and stop it, everything which is outdated now will be worse. Any and all talk to the contrary is at best wishful thinking or an out and out hoax as was the previous densification of the Lynn Valley Core sold to the people of Lynn Valley as a “Pedestrian Oriented Town Center”.

Should Mountain Bikers Be Muzzled?

 From "Dirt Rag" magazine - Issue #67, August 15, 1998 

Well, we need to get this blog jump-started again.  And what usually gets things going is the ever-timely topic of the “out of sight, out of mind” off-road mountain (dirt) biking activities on our North Shore mountains, specifically... This is a new one...

Seems some mountain bikers are now taking aim at the commercial dog walkers, threatening them with violence, because a commercial dog walker or two found themselves on a heavily used mountain bike only/primary trails. Whether in jest, or not, from experience, I know that sometimes the forum dialogue spills onto the trails, in result.

There are so many rogue, hidden, and braided trails everywhere on our North Shore mtns. carved out by the mountain bikers (and “rubber-stamped” by the fine NSMBA on Trailforks.com) – it is very easy for someone to find themselves off the legit, main trail and end up somewhere they do not want to be, or should not be. Even mountain bikers may find themselves off-trail, accidentally – and on purpose...

If the following joked about violence on the NSMB.com forum actually happened, it would not be the first time a mountain biker on Fromme Mtn. trails has bitten a “walker” in violent rage (2015) – and this was a mountain biker who initially lied to the police about the incident, and got away with it! Other mountain bikers started to bully and harass the bitten hiker! Some known from the NSMBA! No arrests, no charges. Go figure? What happened? 

You have to wonder about our law enforcement officers always seeming to coddle these mountain bikers with white kid gloves (in a few more instances I know about.). A clear double-standard at work here. The trails are not a safe place to be for those on foot -- or dog walking, for that matter, in light of these facts. Now back on topic:

One mountain biker goes as far as to post this nasty meme on the topic of "Commercial dog walkers" found on mountain bike only/primary trails : “You never bite a walker. You gotta shoot em in the head.”  https://nsmb.com/forum/forum/the-shore-3/topic/commercial-dog-walkers-130233/?post=2419752#post-2419752 * (I don’t  really care where the reference to this meme comes from. I see this as a threat to overall public safety on the trails!) It pretty much spells out the over-entitled mentality of the mountain bikers who have been given far too much political clout and ill-deserved support and funding. 

The mountain bikers joke on this forum thread post:

“Its not the dogs fault for being brought by a walker onto a biking trail either. Bite the walker!”

 “Well, I guess I'll get a full-face helmet......then I won't be able to bite dogs or walkers!!!!”

You have to wonder at why so many politicians, government agencies, corporations, developers (such as MOSAIC and Polygon), etc. want to support and fund such a rogue lot in the first place? Maybe, it is because they actually admire these “amoral” dirt bikers in the woods? When you consider the lack of ethics in politics and corporations these days, is it any wonder they would choose to support and fund the wily NSMBA? I can't even begin to count all the things the NSMBA and other mountain bikers keep getting away, these days, as the general public continues to be asleep at the wheel.

With electric motorized mountain bikes on forest trails on the near horizon, I expect that the conflicts on the trails will become worse. Grouse Mountain plans to start renting those motor bikes, next month (innocuously calling them "pedal-assist bikes".) The BC gov't is considering allowing electric motorized mountain bikes on Crown land/park land trails, also. Vroom! Vroom!

I still feel that mountain biking needs to be strictly contained, properly managed, and well-enforced. For everyone's safety, including the wildlife being squeezed out of their habitat with the NSMBA's ever-growing trail network. Yes, more NEW trails being built on Fromme Mtn. and beyond, this year. It's insanity. 

Do you believe that mountain bikers and the NSMBA need to be “muzzled” in more ways than one? Let the fur fly, folks... Let's get this worthy blog jump-started again!

(* Note: I expect that this incriminating forum thread link on NSMB.com will soon “disappear”, like many other evidences, I have collected from the local mtb rag over the years. That is why I have a hard copy of it, scanned and saved for future reference.)

Alternate Approval Process - Valuable Tool or Abuse of Power?

"Alternate Approval Processes" (AAPs) have been used by various provincial and regional governments to sidestep around referendum requirements when the powers that be consider the issue minor. They are one of the few "negative billing requirement" type processes allowed by the Provincial Government.

In North Vancouver District the most recent one is to undedicate and detach a 5 x 150 metre section of Kirkstone Park. It was used last year to undedicate a portion of Keithlynn park for the new Mountain Highway interchange.

The two situations are entirely different - Keithlynn was to support a provincial government highways project. Kirkstone's is to facilitate the re-development of Emery Place by a private for-profit developer.

In his North Shore News letter Councillor Robin Hicks asserts the Kirkstone lands that are part of the AAP are "developable slivers". The catch is that in DNV parks there are NUMEROUS such "slivers" most of which contain trails connecting roadways and many are heavily used.

What makes Alternate Approval Processes so problematic is the high number of petitioners required and the short time allowed to collect them. Province-wide, 95+% of AAPs are "approved".

Many people feel AAPs are an abuse of power by governments and should be strictly controlled. It is next to impossible to get 10% of the entire community on pretty much any local area issue!

My personal view is that AAPs need to be discontinued altogether. I have heard the arguments on both sides and believe strongly AAPs do far more harm than good.

Even if AAPs are allowed to continue serious reforms are urgently needed.

Here are the legal amendments I advocate:

- Any AAP application needs to be advertised on the home page of the municipal website "above the fold" as well as in local print media

- AAP petitions should be able to be signed online on the municipal site. (I offer as an example the British Parliament site where there are strict legal requirements on what the government must do based on varying numbers of public responses.)

- The current requirement of 10% of the electorate signing an AAP petition should be lowered - I note that if the current AAP 10% requirement was required for the 2014 election only Mayor Walton (acclaimed), Councillors Muri and Mackay-Dunn would have been elected. I suggest a requirement of half the votes received by the lowest polling Councillor who was elected in the past general election.

Parks - Referendum vs "Alternate Approval Process"

Most District residents "know" that most of the parks in North Vancouver District were given status by referenda and require another referenda to remove their park status. Over 30 parks in NV District have "dedicated by referendum" status with 4 referenda passed in the election of 1996 and 15 more in the 1999 election.

However  that's NOT the view of District who believes that that only applies to the entire park and NOT to portions of it.

This issue came to the public eye due to a motion at the January 29th DNV Council meeting to apply an "alternate approval process" to de-dedicate a trail in Kirkstone Park to build a road where a trail currently exists.

"Alternate approval process" is a form of "negative billing" where District gives itself the right to waive a referendum unless a petition signed by 10% of the electorate is received by the required date.

1st, 2nd and 3rd readings were given to the motion which means that this parks de-dedication will come about UNLESS a petition with 5962 votes is received at District Hall by March 12th.

Because the first three readings were done on January 29th with no advance public notice this will be the only time this will appear on the agenda. Since the public can only speak at Council on non-agenda items at the discretion of the Mayor, Mayor Walton is able to prevent any public input on this matter at Council if he chooses.

During the Council discussion on the proposal it was claimed the cost of staging a referendum would be "too expensive". The referendum dedicating this park was held side by side with the 1999 election which elected the Mayor and Council. Any "expense" was part of the election.

Does anyone reading this not know that 2018 is an election year?

The public is entitled to ask "why the need for haste on this matter"?

The only possible reason why this road might be quickly needed would be to expedite the Mosaic Emery Place re-development proposal - but this proposal while it has had several public meetings has not come to Council yet for first reading! Anyone who follows municipal affairs knows it is extremely unusual for a major project to take less than 6 months from first reading to "shovel ready" - so why the haste?

The most likely reason for the "negative billing" "Alternate Approval Process" route is that District fears an outraged public might vote it down in a genuine referendum.

But that's a view Council has no right to hold - when the Council does first reading they have a legal and moral obligation to view the proposal with all the facts in plain view - maybe it's a great proposal maybe it isn't - but at this stage of the process this is not something Council can legitimately judge.

5962 with a 5 week window to collect that many names. Does that sound fair orreasonable to you?

One more point: District will only accept paper petitions on their form. These can be obtained at District Hall @ 355 West Queens. No online signatures or non-District petition forms will be accepted.

The voting public need to keep in mind that this "negative billing" process can be done with ANY District park and there are few neighborhood parks that could hope to get 5962 votes in 3-5 weeks.

While I'm sure Council would deny any intention to do so, using this "alternate" process all NV District parks could be de-dedicated without referendum one by one. While I'm sure their intentions are pure is this really a power we want in the hand of our elected officials?

If this passes the voting public will need to remember what has been done and remind the Mayor and Council with their ballots that this kind of end run around the referendum requirement is not OK and that we the people do not approve!

True democracy starts with the municipal

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-debate/true-democracy-starts-with-the-municipal/article13769781/

Greater public attention to the importance of municipal government in Canada is long overdue. In many respects, local government is the level of government closest to the people, and the state of democracy in the country as a whole is closely related to the state of democracy at the local level. The fact that voter participation in local elections has declined to abysmal levels is a symptom of the so-called "democracy deficit" that has now spread to the provincial and federal levels.

Let's hear your voice! Calling on the Democratic voice of North Vancouver

It's not so much dead as pining for the Fjords of a  'silly season'. It's an election year so it just didn't make sense to shut things down just yet. Maybe this little blog won't amount to much this year or maybe it will, the point is any discussion is better than none most of the time.

  This blog has been around since the election of 2005 and its glory days were from that inception with Barry Forward at the helm, until about 2011 when I took over. There sure were some interesting voices at that time! (And all the way along).  Unfortunately we cant view that era because Barry F. took it with him when he left. There are some of us who can remember the zealousness of  the late Ernie Crist and Wayne Hunter, Wendy Qureshi (super zealousness) Casey Cleland, Monica Craver,  Vincent Santacrose, Bill Bell, Sue Cook, George Pringle, Lyle Craver , many others and of course the wonderful Anonymous' (who many local political combatants chose to use) and even some elected officials whom dared not post here under any 'official identity'  Oh it was a lively time! I know it kept Barry Forward on his toes. The discussion was not isolated to District politics. In fact some of the most colourful discussion came from The City.

The extension to a four year municipal term starting in 2014 makes the last election seem a long time ago when Mathew Bond and Jim Hanson were the newcomers to District Council. Are there going to be a couple of council seats up for grabs this October? Yes that's right October, not November - that seems strange. What about Mayor? Rumour has it that Roger Bassam will risk his councillor seat for a run at the 'Big Chair'. Mike Little may re-appear again for the same contest. Will Robin Hicks and Doug MacKay-Dunn run this time around?

So were staying open for the time being anyway. The purpose of this little blog has always been to discuss the players and the decision makers of the community of North Vancouver in a spirit of good faith.

NorthVanPolitics.com: Like a Phoenix!

It seems that reports of the death of this blog may have been premature.  At the last minute John Sharpe stepped back in, and will surely get things back to their usual lively self.

Many thanks to John for deciding to take on the job once again.

In the meantime be sure to take time to check out some local stories of note:

Therapy Dogs Want Pat On The Back, But Heartless CNV Passes The Buck

(Quille) Kaddon is the program manager for Vancouver Ecovillage, a non-profit that enables ordinary pets to become therapy dogs after a four-month rigorous training program. Kaddon says she was shocked when she found out that City of North Vancouver has denied a dog licence exemption for three therapy dogs which are in North Vancouver.
At a recent council meeting, the council voted to not grant an exemption for therapy dogs. Instead, the council is writing a letter to the province asking that it create legislation for therapy dogs in the same manner that it regulates the guide dogs. The city does provide free dog licences to the guide and service dogs because there are certificate programs and it is regulated through provincial legislation.

North Vancouver school trustees vote themselves 2% raise

The board of education voted Tuesday to give themselves a 2.2 per cent raise for the period July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018....
Trustees Cyndi Gerlach, Barry Forward, Franci Stratton and Christie Sacré voted in favour of the increase. Trustee Jessica Stanley abstained and trustees Megan Higgins and Susan Skinner were opposed.

Thanks To Your Taxes, Mayor Walton Now Knows More

If you live in the District of North Vancouver, you can take pride in the fact that a small portion of your tax revenue helped pay for Mayor Richard Walton’s education. Mayor Walton was reimbursed $9,647 for a Directors Education program course he took recently.
The DEP program is jointly developed by the Institute of Corporate Directors and the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management. The program fee is $17,500 plus taxes for all modules, along with a $500 application fees.
According to the school, the 12-day course is taught by leading governance experts delivered in four three-day modules and offers practical learning to help directors navigate the boardroom intricacies.

(For those who were looking last fall, The Global Canadian newspaper is now available on-line, and on Facebook.  They would appreciate your clicks and likes.)

The Last Word

At the end of the day nothing written in the last few weeks has changed my mind, and no-one has stepped up to take over, so I am preparing to let the North Vancouver Politics blog disappear.

If you would like to share some fond memories, now is the time.  Later this month we'll turn off commenting.  Once we've backed up and archived the content, and allowed the Wayback Machine to give it one more capture, we'll put it to rest.

Believe it or not, I actually think that there is merit in preserving what's been posted here in the last few years, and will make sure that happens.    Surely future historians will want to have access to things other than Council minutes and North Shore News archives.

Call For Volunteers

Folks, I remain unconvinced that the North Vancouver Politics blog serves a useful purpose any more.   I'm at one of those points where I need to abandon or hand off a few projects to better focus on core activities, and this is a job that I'm giving up.

If you would like to step up and take a shot at running this place, just email me and I'll hand over the keys to the kingdom.   

My parting advice to anyone who steps in to manage this place is straightforward:  It's of little value to have the same dozen people making the same dozen arguments about the same dozen topics.  Echo chambers never changed anything.

If you want this site to have real value, and to have real influence in the governance of our communities, you'll need to find a way to reach a much larger audience, to get them excited about local politics, and (perhaps most important and difficult) convince them that their opinions and actions will actually make a difference.

Ultimately that's why so few people use this blog, why voter turnout is so low, and why the default in North Vancouver is just to complain about any and all new ideas.  People feel disconnected from their local governments, just as they feel disconnected from senior levels of government, and from the corporations that loom over so much our lives.

That sense of powerlessness is not accidental, and affects each and every one of us. (book recomendation)

If there is one reason to keep this blog alive, it is the continued dismantling of the traditional news media in Canada.  As the giant media conglomerates shut down more and more newspapers, and reduce the actual reporting at those that remain, it is even more important that we develop alternatives.

To be blunt: for the vast majority of North Vancouver residents all news about their local government comes from two sources: The North Shore News or word of mouth.  That's not enough.  The former has too few resources, and the latter is too unreliable.

The challenge here, as in almost every community in Canada, is to find a vehicle that will allow everyone in our community to be well informed in an easy and trustworthy fashion.  A lot of smart people are working on that, but thus far they haven't found the magic formula.

So step up and offer to take over,  If there's no serious interest I'll archive the content and turn out the lights.

Otherwise, so long, and thanks for all the fish.

NorthVancouverPolitics.com: Why continue all this nonsense?

In February of 2005 this blog was founded with the following words:

NorthVancouverPolitics.com: Why start all this nonsense? 

Quite simply because as residents of North Vancouver there are several layers of political activity that can have a dramatic impact on our lives. Many (If not most of us) tend to leave the goings on a City Hall, the provincial legislature or Ottawa to the political junkies and those with an immediate vested interest in a particular decision or initiative. We believe there is a need for an open forum for all of us to share our thoughts on the local political scene, and over time, make them available to others. We will put the topics forward, propose different points of view, and let everyone jump in. Right or wrong. We'll see if it works, but there will be no harm done in giving it the old college try. North Vancouver needs to be heard!

This was almost to the day when Facebook was launched at Harvard, and a year and half before Facebook opened their doors to people other than students.  It was a year before Twitter launched. five years before Instagram, and two years before the iPhone appeared.  It was eleven years before Russian trolls  started flooding social media with Fake News about Hillary Clinton.

At that time blogs and forums were the platforms of choice, and email lists still ruled the Internet -- as well as Usenet.

Times have changed in in cyberspace, and the way that people discuss politics has changed with it.

After many months of moderating this blog I have to ask the question: does it still serve a purpose?  Local politicians avoid it like the plague, as do most informed and thoughtful people in the local political scene.  The number of non-Anon participants can be counted on one hand, and my suspicion is that even the Anons number less than two dozen people.

On one hand I'm pleased that we've managed to greatly reduce the flame wars, trolling, and one-issue content that made the blog so unpleasant.  I'm glad to see the end of inflammatory and unfounded allegations about our elected officials.  But although the quality of discussion has improved greatly, the volume of traffic has slowed to a crawl, and even that tends to repeat a handful of themes over and over.

In looking at archived pages over at the Internet Archive it's apparent that NorthVancouverPolitics.com is nowhere near the thriving place that it used to be.

I emailed John Sharpe and Barry Forward a while back, suggesting that maybe it's time to wrap up the site.  No word from them, but I'm still feeling that way.  I'm also open to handing it over to someone with more time and connections who can, just possibly, revitalize it.

So folks? What say you?

Jane Thornthwaite, Champion of Transit!

The North Shore News reports that MLA Jane Thornthwaite is now a proponent of a Skytrain line to and across the North Shore.  She has even come up with a map.

It would have been nice if our MLA had championed this level of transit improvement when her party was in power. As far as I know Thornthwaite never so much as made a peep while the Liberals underfunded transit in favour of bridges.

Real Estate Prices, Here and There.

Who says Vancouver real estate is out of control? In much of the Vancouver region you can pick up a habitable house for around 1.3 million.

Then again, if you spend the same amount in Normandy you can get:

Spacious 18th Century 6 Bedroom Petit Chateau with Coach House and Stables and Dovecote set on 7.4 acres of Garden and Grounds with orchard, small Lake and far reaching Views. Approached over it's own tree lined private driveway this superb property offers 300 m² of living space with the potential to create further accommodation in the attic and lower ground floors. Located 45 minutes from the regional capital of Caen and 15 minutes from a town with main line railway connections to Paris (2 hrs). The property which provides a large comfortable family home has huge potential to create a Chambre d'Hotes and Gite accommodation if required. Many original features are retained including Parquet floors and Marble fireplaces. 

Are we mad to live here?

"The Global Canadian" hits the streets

In an age when printed newspapers are supposed to be dying off, the North Shore just added a new publication.  The Global Canadian can be found in a handful of locations in North and West Vancouver, with broader distribution (and a web site) coming soon.

The new paper is the brainchild of Gagandeep Ghuman, perhaps best known for the Squamish Reporter, which took aim at the North Shore News' sister publication The Squamish Chief. 

The Global Canadian is a broadsheet, a format that seems to say "serious journalism," and it seems that Ghuman likes long form journalism that allows the writer to really dig into a story.   The question he'll need to answer is whether North Shore Readers (and advertisers) will prefer the more hard news style of his paper over the light and breezy North Shore News.

Included in Issue One are stories on:

• Horseshoe Bay ferry pollution
• the ONNI bowling alley
• Edgemont trash cans
• Mayor Walton's higher learning
• West Van's bridge to nowhere
• Bike lane opinions
• A two page infographic about North Shore churchgoers.

You can find the paper at:

WV Locations

Marine Drive and 25th (Dundarave, outside IGA grocery store)

Marine and 15th street (Behind bus stop, outside the gas station)

6330 Bay street (Horseshoe Bay, across from Blenz coffee shop near the ferry terminal)

Bellevue and 17th (outside CIBC bank, east of Fresh St Market)

CNV Locations

Lonsdale between 13th and 14th (Outside Scotiabank)

Lonsdale between 14th and 15th (Outside McNews)

Lonsdale between 16th and 17th (Outside Loblaws)

Lonsdale between 17 and 18th (Across from Browns)

Esplanade and Lonsdale (Outside the Pinnacle Hotel)

Brooksbank and Cotton Rd (The bus stop besides the mall)


DNV Locations

Edgemont and Crescentview drive (outside HSBC bank)

Edgemont and Highland (Outside COBS Bread)

Woodbine and Edgemont

Pemberton and 15th (Outside ethnic food aisle)

Gallant Ave and Panorama (Deep Cove, outside Café Orso)

How Much House is Too Much?

This week a client living in the Caplano Highlands told me that they were looking for a new house.  In her words "2500 square feet is just more than we need."  That would be two adults, two kids, and a dog.

Lucky for them both the City and District are looking at ways to take single family lots and turn them into two family homes.

The City has designated one area for studying the possibility of of allowing duplexes to increase density.  Deadline for study participation is September 25th.

The Duplex Special Study will explore low density housing options (such as duplex development) for the 300 blocks of East 13th to 19th Street in consultation with area residents. This effort will contribute to the implementation of the City’s Housing Action Plan (2016) which established strategies to address the housing needs of City residents including the provision of smaller, more affordable ownership options and increasing the stock of accessory rental units in proximity to transit and services.

The District meanwhile is looking into the idea of subdividing large lots in Upper Capilano to allow two smaller houses.  As reported in the North Shore News:

District of North Vancouver council voted Monday night to begin drawing up an amended bylaw that would make it easier for people who own 66-foot lots in the Upper Capilano neighbourhood to subdivide them into two 33-foot lots. 

If approved by council following a public hearing, the district would create new “small lot infill areas” or SLIAs along the north side of Montroyal Boulevard between Cliffridge Avenue and Ranger Avenue, and on Canyon Boulevard and Clements Avenue between Ranger and Belvedere Drive. Council is also reviewing the possibility of adding the 1000 block of Prospect Avenue.

(I will leave it to others to imagine the impact of these subdivisions at a time when every road into or out of Capilano Highlands is still under construction.)

Missing from either of these proposals is a recognition that something like a third of people in the Lower Mainland live in rental accommodation. I've seen no tangible plans to increase that pool, though maybe our newly minted provincial government will find a way.

(Admin note: I have finally updated the list of links on the right hand sidebar. If there are any that you think should be added, drop me an email.)

Inter River Turf Wars!

Many thanks to Jerry Silver for pointing me to the Inter River Community Association, and their efforts to challenge plans to add two new artificial turf fields at the park of the same name. As they describe it on their web site:

The proposal includes the following key changes:

• Replacement of an existing grass field with artificial turf
• Removal of at least 1.5 hectares of forest to make way for a second turf field
• Installation of tournament lighting towers on both proposed fields, allowing these fields to operate after dark
• Additional parking plus a clubhouse and other sports club and tournament services

There has been minimal consultation with area residents about these plans. Here are some of the issues residents are concerned about:

• Loss of this forested area would have a negative impact to the overall quality of life to many people of diverse backgrounds in our community
• Loss of this forested area would also represent a significant loss of ecological value and is a contravention of the District’s strategic commitment to tree retention and environmental sustainability
• Increased traffic and noise, with fields operating year-round and late into the evening
• The impact of artificial turf on health and safety
• The loss of informal recreational space used by young families who live in the area and other residents, in favour of pay-to-play fields targeted to visiting sports teams

If this interests you, you should also be paying attention to the upcoming revision of the District Parks Bylaw.  These changes will impact every park user.  Check out the minutes and video from last May's Council Workshop.

And while still on Parks, do check out he new Lynn Valley Link trail loop, running from Princess Park, to Inter River, up to and beyond the suspension bridge, and across the Baden Powell back to the park.  The official launch is next weekend, and you should get out and hike part of it.

Back to School Days

It's been a fairly quiet month since Christy Clark finally shuffled off to Buffalo Point Grey.  Despite the predictions of various right wing pundits and "Think Tanks" the world has not come to an end, people still have jobs, and anarchists are hardly ever seen rioting in the streets of Vancouver.  Somehow the Vancouver Sun/Province has managed to not to blame the Horgan government for all of the record breaking wildfires. (Then again, they seem to have also ignored stories about Liberal cuts to spending on fire prevention.)

Locally there are people in the City angry about the giant waterslide; in the District one council member is leading the revolt against the new "bear-proof" garbage bins, and we're heading towards the first possible approval of Beers and Haircuts in Lynn Valley.  And of course in both municipalities the big issue is, as always, traffic, bridges, construction, and the unholy combination of all three.

Or the lack of bike lanes, transit, and continuous sidewalks, if you're not vehicularly inclined.

It almost seems that after expending all too much energy on battling (or at least complaining about) the various "town center" and other major developments in recent years the activists in our cities have just run out of steam, and can't find it in themselves to raise a respectable ruckus these days.

Then again, it is summer, it is sunny, the PNE is on, and all of our North Shore concerns look pretty petty compared to what Trump is delivering south of the border.  Perhaps instead of looking for things to complain about, the nay-sayers are counting their blessings.

But September approaches, so if you've got a bee in your bonnet about local politics now is the time to sit down and write your version of "What I Did on My Summer Vacation."  Be sure to include some links and background information, and refrain from name calling, and email it to me.  If it's half ways interesting yours could be the first topic of the new school year.

Drunken Dreads Coming to Lynn Valley?

The Zazou Salon & Academy, located in Lynn Valley Village (aka at the Lynn Valley Library) has applied for a liquor licence.  (Disclaimer: I'm a sometimes customer, and really like the people there, their strong community involvement, and their impressive charitable work.)  I'm assuming that they plan on offering adult customers a beer or a glass of wine while they get a cut or colour.  I don't think they plan on competing with the Black Bear or Browns for the Friday night hockey game knock back a dozen brews crowd.

I say "I assume" because you would be hard pressed to find any more information, especially on the District of North Vancouver web site.

You'll recall that allowing some businesses like hair salons to serve liquor was one of the pre-election goodies doled out by ex-Premier Christy Clark.  Even though Christy has now disappeared back to her riding... um... Point Grey, the new regulations remain.

In many ways Zazou is probably a perfect business to try out this new licencing regime.  They're unique, they're local, and they always have been able to balance a sense of fun with the serious work of running a successful business.

In the meantime, I'm looking forward to a few Council meetings that will rival chickens for entertainment.

Edit: the application is expected to come before Council in September.

Added: Here's the notice from the District sent to local businesses.

Is the North Shore Ready for Fire?

Like everyone else I've been watching the wildfires in the interior of BC, and even had family members unable to get to their home near Kelowna.  It's all a good reminder that we're also sitting on the edge of forest, and sometimes the woods get pretty hot and dry.

Here on the North Shore we have a regional body that coordinates emergency services - North Shore Emergency Management. From their offices above the RCMP detachment in North Vancouver they offer workshops, training, and try to anticipate what kinds of disasters might befall us, and how we might survive.  They do good work.

Still though, if you scour their site you'll see a whole lot of "be prepared" advice - fill up your closets with food, water, and Grab and Go bags, and don't forget about your cats and dogs -  but not much about what is in place after the Big One arrives.

In working with the NSEM people the one thing I took away is that you really need to think about your own circumstance, how you might find yourself isolated if one or more bridges are blocked, and a realisation that it will quickly come down to every person for themselves.

As much as we might snicker at the Preppers south of the border,  we should understand that our local and provincial governments probably won't have resources available to help everyone who needs it.

This month, as soon as this year's fires abate, you can expect a series of stories describing a lack of resources for people who have lost homes or jobs,  shortfalls in government services, and complaints about mean-spirited insurance companies.  And, if we're lucky, an examination of how many of the recommendations that followed the 2003 Firestorm Review were actually acted on.

In the meantime we should all be talking to our elected officials about what we can expect in the event of an earthquake or major fire.

UPDATE: Hot off the presses at the District of North Vancouver is the new  Community Wildfire Protection Plan 

Sunny Days!

(Not a reference to either Trudeau or Lighthouse.)

We have a new government in BC, one which the Vancouver Sun is already painting as Dangerous and Socialist.

We have survived a sesquicentennial, that most pointless of celebrations, with only minor faux pas, aside from irritating the peoples who lived here before 1867.

The Grouse Grind is open, thousands of weekend hikers have come out of hibernation, and North Shore Rescue are working overtime to keep up with the demand.

Al Neil's cabin is being renovated, and kids of all ages are heading into sports, academic, Bible, or music camps.

Lynn Valley Days are a faint memory, but Harmony Arts is fast approaching.

So, is anyone still thinking about municipal politics?  Or does the North Shore find it impossible to tear itself away from the Bar-B-Que?